


Saving Grace

by KDSkywalker



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anxiety, Anxious Katsuki Yuuri, Coach Victor Nikiforov, Dating, Domestic Fluff, Family, Ice Skating, Jealousy, M/M, Male Homosexuality, Mutual Pining, One Big Happy Family, Supportive Victor Nikiforov, Weddings, What if?, post-Sochi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-02
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-05-01 02:07:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14510172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KDSkywalker/pseuds/KDSkywalker
Summary: How does Yuuri Katsuki react when he learns a secret that Victor Nikiforov has never told...the fact that he is a father!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Faced with some harsh truths after the men's Grand Prix skating final in Sochi, Yuuri Katsuki doesn't exactly know what to think. 
> 
> *Any dialogue that is in [ ] is being spoken in Russian. When I get to parts with Japanese dialogue, I'll figure out what I'm going to use.

Stepping out into the dimly lit hallway, Yuuri Katsuki noticed that most everyone had quickly cleared out after the men’s medal ceremony at the end of the Sochi Grand Prix Final. But for Yuuri, he had watched the ceremony behind the scenes only to quickly flee to a bathroom since he needed to call home.

It had been a phone call that he hadn’t wanted to make, but felt that he needed to after all that his family did to help him make it to the Grand Prix Final. Yet after the phone call, the Russian Punk, Yuri Plisetsky had confronted him over his horrific free skate final. Perhaps the Russian Punk was right – there was just no place in the senior division for two Yuris…

The entire confrontation with Plisetsky was on his mind as Yuuri began his trek down the dimly lit hallway. Perhaps he could convince Celestino to let him skip watching the exhibition skate tomorrow, along with the banquet and just go back to Detroit a day early. As he was musing on his current mood, a strange sound caught his attention. It sounded almost like a child sniffling. But why would a child be down where he was?

Turning and heading towards the locker rooms, Yuuri couldn’t help but notice that the sniffles were getting louder until he passed by a small, dark alcove.

The sniffles were coming from the alcove.

“Hello?” he hesitantly called out as he stopped and looked into the darkness.

He heard a tiny gasp and saw movement in the darkness just before a young girl, probably no more than 4 or 5 years old, emerged from the shadows. “Papa?” she softly asked in an Russian accent, sniffling as she wiped her tear stained eyes against the sleeve of her black pea coat.

“No,” Yuuri said kneeling down in front of her and brushing one of her light brown ringlets away from her tear stained face. “But I’ll help you.”

The young girl simply blinked at him, obviously not understanding anything he was saying. So instead he smiled at her, stood up and held out his hand to her. “Papa?” he asked, hoping that she’d understand the message that he was trying to convey.

Slowly she reached out and took ahold of his hand. Together they made their way back into the hallway and began to walk towards the locker rooms. Hopefully there would still be some ISU officials that could help him out.

Yet a few seconds into their trek, the sound of someone running towards them made both Yuuri and the little girl look up.

Victor Nikiforov came running around the corner, looking almost frantic. Yuuri’s eyes went wide in horror. His idol, the _living legend_ , Victor Nikiforov was practically in front of him. Yet even in his frantic state, he still looked every bit legendary.

“Papa!!” the little girl cried, tugging free from Yuuri’s grasp. She was running towards the Russian skater, whose frantic looking state had melted away into relief.

Yuuri watched as his idol scooped the little girl into his arms, covered her face with kisses and then hugged her close to him – all while the girl was squealing happily in his arms. Yuuri couldn’t help but smile as the scene, but also wondered something. When did Victor Nikiforov have a child?

 _[“You worried me Grace!”]_ Victor whispered into his daughter’s hair once the little girl was in his arms.

_[“I’m sorry, papa. I got lost. But look who found me!”]_

Victor smiled at her once again before turning back towards Yuuri. “Thank you for finding Grace,” he said. He wanted to say more, but was cut off by Yuuri.

“Um…it was no problem!” Yuuri replied stumbling over his words as a faint blush spread across his cheeks. “I really should be getting back to my coach!”

He quickly made his way past the father and daughter, still questioning to himself about what he just saw.

“Spasibo!” Grace called out as Yuuri walked away from them. The duo watched as the Japanese skater turned around, smiled slightly then scampered away.

 _[“Papa, why didn’t you ask him to dinner with us?”]_ Grace asked once Yuuri had turned the corner back towards the locker rooms.

_[I froze.]_

* * *

 After grabbing his gear from the locker room and finally finding Celestino, Yuuri had made it back to the hotel. Once there, he lay face down in the pillows as the events that followed the men’s competition ran through his head.

_…the dreaded phone call home…_

_…the confrontation with Yuri Plisetsky…_

_…finding Victor Nikiforov’s daughter and reuniting her with her father…_

_…Victor Nikiforov has a daughter…_

His mind couldn’t fathom the idea. The man he idolized for so long was a father! Why hadn’t he ever known about this? How could Victor keep something like that hidden? Why keep something like that hidden?

Yet, thinking about it, over the last few years there had not been any gossip about Victor Nikiforov’s love life.

Not since he was around the age of 23. Which is probably around the same time he became a father if he were to guess the age of Victor’s daughter.

Oh. That’s right, her name is Grace.

Sighing as he flipped over to his back, Yuuri couldn’t help but be envious of the woman that Victor Nikiforov was sharing a bed with.

 _‘He did make an adorable little girl…’_ was the last thing that Yuuri remembered before allowing sleep to take over and lull him into his dreams – dreams that normally involved flashes of silver.

But tonight, Yuuri dreamt of the impossible.

A chance to have a family with the man of his dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pining goes both ways...

_“Isn’t he beautiful, Chris? Just look at his spins and step sequences!” Victor said gushing to his best friend Christophe Giacometti as they watched a replay of the Four Continents competition as they prepared for the upcoming Worlds. It took everything in him not to hug his television in an attempt to get closer to the man that he had been besotted with for the last several years._

_“Ah yes. Yuuri Katsuki. He is truly a sight to behold.” Chris said, sighing as well. “I’ve known him since my junior days…”_

The 4-year-old memory, still clear as ever, replayed in Victor’s mind as he lay across the bed. That was the day that Victor had first spoken to anyone else about his infatuation with the Japanese ace.

Rolling onto his back, Victor simply starred up at the ceiling of his hotel room. He knew that he should be getting ready for the banquet, yet part of him just did not feel up to it. Perhaps he should have already left to go back to St. Petersburg with Grace and her nanny, especially to make sure that Grace didn’t wander off from her again like she had done the day before. Yet Yakov had insisted that Victor stay for the banquet since he was the winner of the Grand Prix and he was Russian.

Damn loyalty to country. More and more lately, he had simply wanted to give it all up – even more so now that Grace was growing up and he wanted to spend more time with her. He had already missed so much of her childhood and he didn’t want to miss any more.

Yet missing his daughter growing up wasn’t his only regret of late. His other regret was not talking to the one he had been longing to get to know on a more personal level for so long. He had even seen Yuuri Katsuki earlier that day, just after the exhibition and offered to take a photo with him. Silently, he had hoped that the Japanese ace would accept his offer so that they would be able to be close to for a brief moment. Then perhaps things could transpire from there.

But when Yuuri had simply turned and walked away from him, Victor was disappointed. In fact he was more than disappointed, he was crushed.

The one man he had been pinning after for 6 long years had essentially rejected him.

So why then, hours after the incident, did it still bother him?

Was it because Yuuri knew about Grace? Sure Victor had kept her out of the limelight for several reasons, mainly to avoid questions – especially about who her mother was, but that shouldn’t matter. Or maybe it did. Before Grace had come into his life, Victor had never been very open about his love life, preferring to have something about his life private. While most would assume that he was straight given that he was considered one of the hottest athletes in the world, the ones who were closest to Victor knew better.

He was anything but straight.

Yet ever since Grace arrived in his life, relationships became second to her. Although the only one that Victor was secretly crushing on was the adorable Japanese skater with amazing thighs and an even better ass.

Well it actually wasn’t that much of a secret who his crush was.

Chris knew. Hell he had even offered to introduce the two of them, which Victor had quickly turned down on more than one occasion.

And of course Grace knew. His four year old, almost five, daughter was exactly like her mother in that sense – always somehow knowing the things he wasn’t telling.

Despite all of this, the one thing that Victor knew for sure was that if he ever got the chance to talk to Yuuri Katsuki again, he wasn’t going to freeze like he had done the day before when Yuuri had found Grace.

Nope.

He would make sure that the adorable and talented Japanese skater knew exactly who had a crush on him.

 

* * *

Yuuri did not want to be at the banquet. He was absolutely miserable. In fact, he had been miserable since he had heard a little girl call Victor Nikiforov ‘papa’ the day before.

Could his week get any worse?

First his dog died.

Then he crashed and burned during his free skate while on the same ice as Victor! Sure he had skated in other events with Victor, yet this was the Grand Prix Final. Not a prelim or some other smaller event. No, this was the big show! And he had to go and screw it up, thus loosing his second place standing after the short program and ending up in sixth.

And lastly, his secret dreams of casually winning over the heart of one Victor Nikiforov – which would be a one in a million chance – were crushed when Yuuri came face to face with Victor and his adorable daughter, Grace.

Yuuri threw back the flute of champagne without hesitation, trying to fight off the misery that was forcing its way to the surface.

_Victor has a daughter._

He reaches for and throws back another flute of champagne. He sets the empty flute down as he picks up another.

_Victor has a daughter, therefore is straight._

Throws back another flute of champagne. Goes for another.

_He has no chance of ever having a romantic relationship with the man of his dreams._

The self-destructive cycle of thoughts and drinking continued…

 

* * *

Victor watched Yuuri wearily from the corner of his eye as one of his sponsors discussed something rather boring with him across the banquet hall. He tried to seem like he was interested, yet all he wanted to do was go and talk to Yuuri Katsuki.

Eventually, the banquet began to thin out of the ISU officials and several sponsors, leaving mainly the skaters themselves.

 _‘Finally’_ Victor thought to himself. _‘Now’s my chance to find Yuuri!’_

Glancing around the room, Victor became increasingly nervous when he couldn’t spot the Japanese skater anywhere. He could have sworn he had just seen him over at the table with the champagne. And with how much it looked like Yuuri had been drinking, the younger skater would probably be very tipsy or drunk by that point. Yet before Victor could begin to really to look, he was surprised by a pair of arms encircling his waist and the feeling of someone starting to grind up against him. His eyes widened in shock as he looked down and saw that it was Yuuri Katsuki who had wrapped his arms around him and was grinding up against him with his horrific tie around his head like a bandana. A faint blush spread across Victor’s face, as he stood frozen on the spot.

What was going on? There went his idea of not freezing up around the skater.

“VVVVIIIIKKKTTTOOORRRR!!!” Yuuri said in a drunken stupor, continuing to grind against him. “My family owns a hot spring resort, so when the season is over you should come! Hey I have an idea! If I win this dance off, you’ll come to Hasetsu and become my coach! Be my coach, Victor!”

Yuuri’s embrace became tighter as Victor considered what he was saying. Coaching? He had never considered it. Could he do it? It was definitely surprising and something that no one would expect. As much as he loved the ice, it wasn’t possible to be able to skate forever. Maybe he should coach Yuuri. It would give him the chance to not only spend more time with his daughter before she started to go to school full time, but also he could get to know the man he yearned to know better in more than just one way.

The blush that was already evident on his face became brighter as Victor’s thoughts about the seemingly innocent skater suddenly became more lustful.

“Oy! Back off!” Yuri Plisetsky said getting angry about the scene in front of him. “Victor isn’t going anywhere! Just because you wrecked your own program and came in dead last, doesn’t give you the right to ask the champion for help! He’s a skater not a coach!”

“Yuri!” Victor chastised. “That’s enough!”

Shockingly, Yuuri didn’t back down at all. Victor had heard from various whispers throughout the day and into the night that Yuri had already yelled and gotten in Yuuri’s face along with calling him a loser after the Japanese skater’s disastrous free skate, with Yuuri not defending himself to the accusations. But that didn’t seem to be the case this time. Instead, Yuuri stood up, turned towards Yuri and poked him – hard – in the middle of the chest. “You’ll be my first challenger!” Yuuri declared. “Let’s go kiddo!”

Yuuri drunkenly staggered towards the middle of the dance floor. Yuri snarled slightly before giving in and following the drunk Japanese skater. Victor couldn’t believe that Yuri was taking up the dance off challenge from Yuuri. A heat rushed through Victor’s body as he watched the dance off begin – a long forgotten heat.

And holy hell, Yuuri could move. Where did these smooth, fluid movements come from when Yuuri was as drunk as he was? The longer Victor watched, the hotter he became.

It didn’t take long before Yuri gave up in trying to defeat Yuuri in dancing. Maybe if it had been classical dancing, Yuri might have stood a chance. Instead, the moves that Yuuri was throwing down were hip-hop like, along with a few break dancing moves and bits of various other forms all mixed in. Almost immediately, Victor jumped in and began dancing with the smaller Japanese man without hesitation once it had changed to flamingo dancing. Together the two skaters danced – both with smiles on their faces.

As the night continued, Victor’s amazement grew as he learned exactly what the Japanese skater was capable of – from dancing to the sexiness of his slender body to his pole dancing abilities.

Yes, pole dancing.

Even Christophe Giacometti got in on that one - taking up Yuuri’s pole dancing challenge. Yuuri clearly won in Victor’s mind.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. And as the banquet drew to an end, Victor felt for the first time in the long time, that he was complete. Everything in his world had finally ‘clicked’.

And he didn’t want it to end – ever.

 

* * *

The shrill of an alarm clock, coupled with the banging fist on the door startled Yuuri so much that he knocked his elbow against the nightstand to the side of his bed. Rubbing his temples slightly as he stood up and padded to his hotel room door, he wondered just how many flutes of champagne he consumed the night before. Opening the door, he was met face to face with Celestino.

“We’re late! Hurry!” the Italian said, storming into the room and helping his athlete quickly throw all his items into his suitcase.

“Why didn’t you call me?” Yuuri asked swiping some clothes and heading for the bathroom to change into.

“I did. Several times. Every time you said you were awake.”

“And you believed me!” Yuuri said a moment late emerging dressed and with his toiletries in his hand. Celestino simply rolled his eyes as they finished packing Yuuri’s things for the trip back to Detroit.

Making sure that everything was packed and nothing was left behind, the skater and coach departed for the airport minutes later.

Yet missed in the chaos of the morning was a folded note that had slipped between the pillow and the sheets:

_‘I’ll see you at Worlds! Then I’m yours! –Victor 7-812-XXX-XXXX’_

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that I'm not saying much about Grace's mom, but all will be explained in time! Let me know your thoughts!
> 
> Feel free to check my other YoI fics:
> 
>  
> 
> [Heart of the Matter](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11796945)  
> [Beautiful Disaster](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13995969)  
> [Twist of Fate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13188210)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Decisions, decisions

Two long, miserable weeks passed by for Victor once he had returned to St. Petersburg. He was certain that Yuuri Katsuki would have contacted him by now – even if it were only a simple ‘hello’ in a text message. Perhaps he had misread the entire situation between him and the younger skater. Perhaps everything that had transpired at the banquet, especially afterwards, had been a figment of his imagination…

_....”I could die a happy man if you were my boyfriend.” Yuuri said with a slight slur has Victor helped him back to his hotel room after the banquet. The younger skater landed with a slight bounce on his bed as Victor helped him to the bed._

_Victor had taken it upon himself to make sure that nothing happened to the obviously drunk Japanese skater. Yuuri’s coach, Celestino had left the banquet after a few hours, leaving his skater to find his own way back. When Celestino had passed by Victor on his way out the door, he seemed to be engaged in a phone call about something. So who knew where the coach had actually gone._

_But that didn’t matter at the moment. What did was what Yuuri had just said._

_He could die a happy man if Victor was his boyfriend._

_Was this some sick joke or did Yuuri actually mean it? Unfortunately, Yuuri was to drunk to make heads or tails about much of anything. They had been lucky to even find their way back to Yuuri’s room – Victor had been able to locate Yuuri’s keycard in his suit pocket, which thankfully had his room number written on it. But that didn’t mean that Victor still wasn’t going to ask since often times those who were drunk told the truth since the alcohol loosened their tongues._

_“Do you really mean it Yuuri? You’d be happy dating me?”_

_Yuuri made what sounded like a happy sound as a goofy smile spread across his face from where he was stretched out on the bed. “Of course! Who wouldn’t want to date a sexy man like you?”_

_Blush grew in Victor’s cheeks. God, he hoped that Yuuri wasn’t lying to him and that he would remember this conversation in the morning. “We will talk more about this another time,” he happily said, leaning over and placing a kiss against Yuuri’s forehead._

_“Hai!” Yuuri happily said…_

Had the entire conversation been the hopeful longing of a desperate heart? No, he was pretty sure that it did happen. He remembered making sure that Yuuri was settled in bed before slipping out the door once the younger skater had fallen asleep. But that wasn’t before he had left the Japanese ace his phone number on a note. In hindsight, perhaps he should have put the note underneath Yuuri’s glasses that were on the nightstand instead of on the pillow like he had done.

“What am I going to do Makkachin?” he asked sighing as he held his beloved dog closer to him. The poodle simply snuggled closer to her owner and nuzzled against him. The dog could sense some distress in her owner. It was early afternoon, just a few days prior to the Russian nationals. Victor should have been at skating practice, but instead he had decided to take yet another day off. He had partly wanted to spend a little more time with Grace and partly to fret over the fact that Yuuri still had not contacted him. Thankfully, Grace’s nanny Alexis, had taken Grace out on some errands for part of the day, so Victor had been left to his own devices for most of the morning.

Yet to be honest, did he actually want to skate at the Russian nationals? Sure he could still skate in the European Championships and the World Championships since he had met the ISU’s requirements along with receiving invitations to both competitions already, but what good would come of it if the entire reason for his motivation were gone?

Wait.

Was his motivation really gone? When had his motivation changed? Since when had Yuuri Katsuki become his motivation? If he was being honest with himself, he knew that the answer was over the last couple of years – and especially this year with his ‘Stay Close to Me’ program. So while he had been essentially skating for Yuuri with his free programs over the last few years, he had been skating for Grace with his short programs.

He sighed as he curled up on his couch with Makkachin and closed his eyes. Life was truly unfair. He had finally found someone that seemed to enjoy skating as much as he had and was fairly good at it. Yuuri only needed help with his jumps and quad sequences because other than that, he skated like his body was creating music on the ice or at least that was what Victor had seen from the YouTube videos of Yuuri’s skating that he had found and watched, along with what he had seen the few times he had been able to see the Japanese skater at competitions. Unfortunately, Victor had been unable to find Yuuri on any social media platforms. Who didn’t use social media in today’s world?

Obviously Yuuri Katsuki.

Come to think of it, the upcoming Worlds were in Japan and Yuuri was from Japan. Perhaps he would get lucky and Yuuri would remember something from the banquet and actually want to talk!

Maybe…

But highly doubtful knowing his luck as of late, especially when it came to things that his heart desired.

But the heart wants what it wants.

So how else could he reach out to the skater who had no social media footprint?

 

* * *

 

“So this is what – your 10th Russian national title in a row?” Chris asked during his and Victor’s weekly Skype conversation once Grace had been put to bed.

“7th.” Victor said with a sigh.

“If you’re tired of winning, then just quit. Makes things a lot easier on me!”

“I bet it does!” Victor said with a smirk. “But it’s not about skating so much…”

“Ah it’s about Yuuri isn’t it?”

“Da!”

“He stole your heart at the Grand Prix banquet didn’t he?” Chris asked with a goofy smile on his face as he looked across the video feed at his best friend.

Victor nodded as he ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “It’s just that I thought we had such a good time at the banquet, but now I’m not sure! I left him my phone number since he asked me to be his coach next season and obviously he needs a new one since he is imploding at his competitions…”

“So I take it you saw that he placed 11th at the Japanese Nationals?”

“Da. You’ve known him longer Chris. What is going on?”

“I honestly have no idea. I’ve never seen this happen before. Yuuri has always been a little standoffish at times, perhaps a little skittish. But once you get to know him that all changes. Although at the banquet, he was completely drunk.”

“Not helping Chris…”

“How about this. On Instagram look up Phichit Chulanont. He is a skater from Thailand and Yuuri’s best friend. He is your ticket to keeping up with all things Yuuri Katsuki. In fact, he is on my follow list.”

Victor picked up his phone and scrolled through Chris’ follow list on Instagram, quickly finding the Thai skater. He clicked the follow button on the skater’s profile page. He would go through all the photos later. Hopefully he’d find some with Yuuri in them.

“I hope this helps because I want some serious competition at Euros!” Chris said with a smirk when Victor looked back at the Skype conversation on the computer screen.

Victor simply winked.

“There’s the Victor that I know and love! Now hopefully fatherhood hasn’t locked away all the Nikiforov charm.”

“I guess we will just have to see!” Victor said with a chuckle. “Speaking of Grace, I have a question. After Worlds, I was wanting to take Grace to Disney. I’m weary about going all the way to Disney World in the USA, so I was thinking about Disneyland Paris. Would you and Masumi like to join us?”

“While that does sound tempting since we both haven’t seen Grace in almost a year, we already have plans for a trip to Bali before training starts again. Besides you do know that there is Tokyo Disneyland and you’ll already be in Japan…”

The word Japan made Victor think of Yuuri. Victor hadn’t even considered Tokyo Disneyland to take Grace to. Perhaps if Yuuri was at Worlds he would invite him too…

“That’s a good idea! It’s never too early to expose Grace to new cultures! Besides Disney is Disney!”

“Exactly!”

The two friends talked for a few more minutes before calling it a night with Victor being an hour ahead of Chris. Yet before he even thought of falling asleep, he took back out his phone and opened back up Instagram, pulling up Phichit Chulanont’s page. Thumbing through a few pages, he liked a few photos – especially the ones that had Yuuri in them.

For the first time in weeks, Victor managed to fall asleep with a smile on his face.

 

* * *

 

“OMG! OMG! OMGGG!!!!!” Phichit squealed.

Yuuri turned over and squinted at his cell phone before reaching for his glasses. Slipping them on he could see that it was 7:30 in the morning. It was too early for Phichit to be squealing as loud as he was. In fact the squeals were only getting louder.

“What is it Phichit?” he called out from his bed.

Phichit came barreling through his bedroom door. “OMG YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHO FOLLOWED ME ON INSTAGRAM!!!!”

“Christophe Giacometti?” Yuuri asked, taking back off his glasses.

“CLOSE!”

“Who then?” Yuuri asked, turning back over in bed.

“VICTOR!”

Yuuri sat up straight and blinked at his best friend. “Victor Nikiforov?”

Phichit nodded. “And he liked all the photos with you in them.”

“Hun?”

“Seriously!! LOOK!”

Putting back on his glasses, Yuuri took the phone from his friend and looked at his Instagram feed. Sure enough, a v-nikiforov was now following Phichit and had liked almost all of his more recent photos – especially the ones with Yuuri in them. “It doesn’t matter anyways.” Yuuri said, handing Phichit his phone back. “It’s not like I’ll ever skate with Victor again since I’m retiring.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww poor Yuuri!!!! If he only knew....


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changes are made

_“We now have a men’s singles consecutive five-time winner in the World Figure Skating Championships! The victor is Russia’s Victor Nikiforov!”_

_“What do you have in mind for next season?”_

_“Do you have you programs already planned?”_

_“Are you ever going to slow down?”_

Victor sat at the table in the press conference room Saitama Super Arena fielding questions, along with Christophe Giacometti and Otabek Altin as silver and bronze medal winners of the Worlds. As the questions where posed to him, he briefly considered what he was being asked.

Did he honestly have an answer for these headline hungry hounds? No, he didn’t.

Part of him wanted to stay in Japan and try to find Yuuri Katsuki – this was the compulsive side of him. He knew that the skater had parted ways with his coach and returned home from where he had been training in America after announcing an early retirement. But why did Yuuri retire? Why had he not come to Worlds with it being in Japan? Had Yuuri not seen the note that he had left back in Sochi?

Yet the logical part of him was telling him to return to St. Petersburg, sit on the couch with Grace and Makkachin for a few weeks before starting to prepare for the next season after he and Grace went on their vacation. He would simply delete the photos from Sochi and move on.

But he honestly didn’t want that.

_“Right now, I’m thankful for this win,” he said. “And I’m going to take a few weeks off to rest and plan for next season. I have a few ideas, but nothing set in stone.”_

It wasn’t the truth, but it also wasn’t a lie. He simply wanted to spend time with his daughter and enjoy their trip to Tokyo Disneyland, yet he had wished that Yuuri had attended Worlds. He lived in Japan, so why hadn’t he come? It was one of his lingering questions.

* * *

 

Yuuri sighed as walked back from Ice Castle Hasetsu. While it felt amazing skating for the first time in a long time, part of him wished that he had gone to Worlds.

But now it was all said and done. He had received a text alert during his time at Ice Castle stating that Victor had won his 5th consecutive World Championship. Perhaps he would watch a replay of it later.

Part of him was regretting giving up skating, but part of him knew it was time.

Time to move on.

Yet his idea to move on was derailed a few days later when his phone began blowing up with numerous alerts and tags.

Alerts and tags of him skating Victor Nikiforov’s free program from the other night at Ice Castle had been uploaded.

Who had uploaded a video of him?

Within moments, his phone began to ring with a phone call from Takeshi Nishigori that explained everything. His and Yuuko’s skating obsessed triplets had recorded the video of him and posted it to their Instagram account. Even his former ballet instructor was asking when he decided to become an internet sensation.

And the only thing that Yuuri could do was curl up and sleep.

His anxiety was currently running rampant and he needed to shut it all out.

Sleep. Sleep was what he needed.

* * *

 

 _[“Papa, I’m not sleepy.”]_ Grace said as she snuggled up to Victor’s shoulder as he carried her into the hotel suite that they were currently staying in at the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel.

Victor simply smiled and pressed a kiss against her forehead before he placed her on her bed. Immediately she curled up with a pillow and her new Stitch stuffed animal that he had bought for her. He couldn’t help but smile as he turned away from the bed and moved towards her suitcase to find her pajamas. They had been at Tokyo Disneyland for almost a week already and were due to fly back to St. Petersburg in two days.  As he searched for her pajamas, his cell phone began buzzing in his pocket. Looking at the screen, he saw that it was a text from Chris. Setting the pair of soft flannel pants and a t-shirt down that he had found for Grace, Victor clicked opened his friend’s message.  

_‘I noticed that at Worlds you seemed to be lost in your own little world. I figured it had to do with a certain Japanese skater who was not present. You might want to click on the link that I’ve sent you.   –C’_

The second message from Chris was a link to a video on an Instagram page from someone known as Suekota3sisters. It was of Yuuri Katsuki skating to Victor’s free program _Aria: Stay Close to Me_ from this past season. And it was uploaded on the night of the free skate of the World Championships! He had seen many people try to emulate his skating before, but nothing like this.

If Yuuri Katsuki could skate his own program this well, there was no telling what else he could be capable of.

Yuuri Katsuki currently didn’t have a coach.

Yuuri Katsuki had asked him to be his coach.

The decision was easy.

He and Grace were going stay in Japan for a little while longer. Screw logic. He needed to have Yuuri Katsuki in his life – he needed to get to know the Japanese skater who seemed to make music as he skated. He had put off things for long enough.

It was time to be a bit impulsive and do something for himself for a change.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Real life snuck up on me. So here is a transitional chapter so to speak. Enjoy!
> 
> Feel free to check my other YoI fics:
> 
> [Heart of the Matter](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11796945)  
> [Lifetime of Happiness](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14972339)  
> [Twist of Fate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13188210)


	5. Chapter 5

Yuuri trudged towards the front door of the onsen as he tugged on his heavy coat along with his gloves and hat. Who would have thought that an unseasonable snowstorm would have blanketed the area this late into the spring season, especially around the time that the cherry blossoms were blooming. He would have probably known about the storm if he had kept his phone turned on, but with all of the alerts coming in because of the video of him skating to Victor’s routine, it was setting his anxiety on edge.

It was just better to kept the damn thing off.

And it had only been a day!

As he opened the front door, he was greeted with a sight that he thought he would never see again.

A little girl with light brown ringlets was sitting in the snow, happily making a tiny snowman on the front porch of the onsen. She looked up at Yuuri as he opened the door.

“Yuuri!” Grace Nikiforov squealed in delight as she launched herself towards him. Yuuri caught the happy child as he fell back into the entry of the onsen.

Taken back and unable to find his voice for a moment, Yuuri sat up and looked at Grace in shock.

“She and her father just checked in. he’s that good looking foreign fellow whose…” Toshiya Katsuki said from behind the registration desk.

Yuuri didn’t even give his father time to finish his statement, before he was up on his feet and sprinting towards the male side of the onsen. 

* * *

 

After making the decision to stay in Japan the previous night, Victor had remembered that Yuuri’s family ran an hot springs resort in Hasetsu, so Victor quickly located only hot spring resort in the city – Yu-topia Katsuki. He had a pretty good idea that this was where Yuuri lived – not only because his last name was part of the hot spring’s name, but also there were pictures of him inside the hot spring. Or it could be that everyone in the town supported him…

Either way, the older gentleman who had checked Victor and Grace in suggested that he relax in the hot spring while he and his wife figure out what guest rooms he and Grace would be staying in. A dip in a hot spring sounded perfect! The older gentleman even offered to watch Grace in his basic English, while she played in the snow just outside the front door. He mentioned that his son, Yuuri, had a best friend who had triplets, who he and his wife often babysat.

Knowing that Grace would be in safe hands, he happily wrapped a towel around his waist and placed his clothes into a locker, along with a soft green robe that the inn loaned him to wear after he was done soaking in the hot spring. Hopefully Yuuri would show up soon and he could surprise him.

But what would he exactly say to him? Victor debated various things as he slipped into the outdoor hot springs, which felt perfect even though it had snowed outside. As he settled into the water, he heard various items crashing before the door leading back inside was flung open.

Standing in the doorway, out of breath, dressed in a sweater and jacket, was Yuuri Katsuki – just as adorable as he remembered. “Vi…Victor!” he stammered. “Why are you here?”

Standing up out of the water, with the statue blocking just enough of him to be modest, Victor stood up and held out a hand towards the Japanese skater. “Yuuri, starting today, I’m your coach. I’ll make you win the Grand Prix Final,” he said with an air of confidence. And to add to his emphasis, he gave a flirtatious wink towards Yuuri.

“Hun? WHAT?!”

* * *

 

Victor watched with a smile on his face as Grace tried to grasp the concept of using chopsticks to eat the meal that had been prepared for them both by Yuuri’s mother, Hiroko Katsuki. Yuuri had said it was called a pork cutlet bowl and it was one of his favorite meals. Victor had thought that it had tasted heavenly, but he also wanted to make sure that his daughter was able to enjoy hers.

“Here,” Yuuri said, handing her a fork. “You don’t always have to use chopsticks.”

Looking from Yuuri to her father and back to Yuuri, Grace slowly reached for the fork after she set down the chopsticks. She took a bite of her meal.

“Vkusno!” she happily said mimicking her father’s reaction only moments ago.

Victor and Yuuri both chuckled softly.

 _[I like it here papa.]_ she said once she was done eating. Yuuri had retreated to the kitchen for a moment with their plates.

_[Me too.]_

_[Are we going to stay here?]_

_[Maybe for a bit. Is that ok?]_

Grace nodded with a smile on her face. “Lesson?” she asked as she picked up his phone and held it out to him. Victor nodded as he opened up the language app on his phone and found the English lesson that she had left off on. He watched as she retreated to a corner and began working on her English skills.

And for the first time in the longest time, Victor Nikiforov felt relaxed.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things pick up next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Ice Tiger of Russia arrives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few things...since this is an AU, there will be several things that aren’t like the anime, yet still happen in a different way. Such as who gives Yuri P the nickname Yurio.

For several days after Victor and Grace’s arrival, Yuuri still was in disbelief about it all. Victor Nikiforov, the living legend, was in his home and wanted to coach him! Several times a day, Yuuri had to pinch himself simply to make sure that he was awake and wasn’t dreaming.

Yet Yuuri soon realized just how serious Victor was during a workout late one afternoon. It had been the first time in over a week that Yuuri had been allowed to skate, let alone skate with Victor. He had been on a strict diet and exercise routine to get back to the weight he was at back at the Grand Prix Final. Victor had insisted upon it and Yuuri hadn’t minded since he knew that he had let himself go a bit.

“Oy! Victor!” a voice yelled across the rink as Victor watched Yuuri completing his warm up figures. Both of them turned towards the new voice.

Standing along the boards at the opposite side of the ice rink was Yuri Plisetsky. What was the junior world champion in figure skating doing at Ice Castle.

“Hello Yuri!” Victor joyfully said, waving at the young skater. “I’m glad you’re here!”

“I have your stuff old man!” Yuri yelled. “You better give me what you promised!”

“What did you promise?” Yuuri asked, moving closer to Victor on the ice before they both moved towards the boards where Yuri was standing.

“A program for his senior debut.” Victor answered.

“What did he have to do for you?”

“Bring Grace and me our things from St. Petersburg,” he said with a smile. “Since I’m coaching you, we were going to need more than what is in our suitcases. Besides, I’m sure Makkachin was lonely, so she came too!”

Had Victor really just said that his dog was here now too?

* * *

 

Victor wasn’t joking about what he had made Yuri Plisetsky do for him. When they arrived back at Yu-topia and Yuuri saw the number of boxes that were waiting for Victor, he began to hyperventilate.

_The Victor Nikiforov was serious about coaching him! He had actually moved his things to Japan!_

Yuuri’s mini freak-out was short lived however due to the fact that something large and fluffy had bowled him over seconds after he had opened the door to the main lobby of the onsen. It took Yuuri a moment to realize that this had to be Makkachin. The slobbery licks from the over zealous pooch was what had given it away.

“Makka!” Victor happily said, kneeling on the floor near to Yuuri and opening his arms wide. The pooch gave Yuuri one more lick before happily bounding over to her owner. Yuuri sat up and adjusted his glasses that had been knocked askew. He looked towards the reunion of owner and dog. The sight of Victor and his dog brought a small smile to his face, yet also hurt a bit. The loss of his own dog still hurt.

“Cats are better anyways,” Yuri huffed as he came in last to the onsen. “They aren’t as slobbery.”

“This is why dogs are man’s best friend!” Victor said, pressing his cheek happily against his dog’s head. “Isn’t that right, Makka?”

The happy pooch woofed as Yuri simply scoffed away. That was when Mari found them.

“Oh good!” she happily said. “Mom and dad were wondering just where Victor and Grace were going to put all of their things?”

She motioned to the numerous boxes.

Realization dawned on Yuuri as his sister said that.

Just where would all of these boxes go?

* * *

 

As usual, Hiroko Katsuki had a plan already in place. In the family quarters of the onsen, there was an unused banquet room with a smaller storage space attached. Victor thought it was perfect! He would have the larger room, while the smaller storage space would be made into a small room for Grace since it was the perfect size for her own bed and a small shelf for some books and toys, while her clothes would be kept in the larger room with her father’s.

The rest of the afternoon, Yuuri, Victor and Mari moved things around, cleaned up the banquet room and moved the boxes into the large space. Yuri had been nominated for babysitting duty – both for Grace and Makka. He grudgingly took on the task knowing that his senior debut depending on Victor helping him.

“All it needs now is furniture!” Victor happily said once all the boxes were moved. “I love shopping!”

“I’m sure you can order most everything you and grace will need online,” Yuuri wearily said as he collapsed into a nearby chair.

“No doubt!” Victor happily said.

The sound of small feet running along the floor of the hallway drew the attention of the two men. Within seconds, Grace came bounding in from the hallway with Makka behind her.

 _[Is my new room ready?]_ she asked.

 _[Almost. We can pick out a bed after dinner]_ Victor answered, picking up Grace into his arms. He blew a raspberry kiss against her cheek to make her laugh. Yuuri watched the moment between the father and daughter. He still couldn’t help but wonder where Grace’s mother was.

* * *

 

Between the arrival of Yuri Plisetsky and the arrival of the numerous boxes belonging to Victor, skating had seemed the last thing on anyone’s mind.

That was everyone but Yuri Plisetsky.

“Now will you show me the program you have planned for me?” Yuri questioned during breakfast the next morning.

“So impatient.” Victor said buttering a piece of toast and handing it to Grace. “But yes I will show you your program. And you as well, Yuuri.”

Yuri huffed slightly. “How the hell are you going to not get our names confused?”

“Yuuri,” Grace slowly said as she pointed at Yuuri. Then she pointed at Yuri. “Yurio.”

She giggled as Yuri’s face began to turn red at his nickname she had given him. She didn’t know a lot of English, but she knew enough to say their names.

“That’s a perfect idea!” Victor exclaimed, hugging his daughter to his side. “Yuuri and Yurio!”

“I’M NOT YURIO!”

* * *

 

Yuuri smiled as he stretched using the barre in Minako’s dance studio. What he was smiling at was the fact that Grace Nikiforov was mimicking his movements.

The last two weeks had been the craziest, yet the best weeks of his life.

He had been given a program that was choreographed by Victor Nikiforov for the upcoming skating season. The program was titled ‘ _In regards to love: Eros’_. And while the program had sexual undertones, Yuri found that as long as he focused on his hidden feelings for Victor then skating to the music was a lot easier.

Had he told Victor that?

Nope.

Instead he had made the mistake of declaring that pork cutlet bowls was what made him loose all inhibitions.

And this had been in front of Yurio and Grace as well, which had led Yurio to calling him ‘pork cutlet bowl’ behind Victor’s back.

While dealing with Yurio was an on going situation, he had learned that the talented young Russian did have a few soft spots beneath the tough exterior that he attempted to portray. Perhaps that had been why Victor had decided on an opposing theme for Yurio – the short program that Victor had choreographed for his former rink mate was _‘In regards to love: Agape’._

Selfless love versus sexual love.

It was going to be an interesting season.

During the afternoons when Victor would be working with Yurio on his program, Yuuri retreated to Minako’s studio for dance lessons to keep limber or a chance to perfect a part of his routine. After the first few times coming to the studio, Yuuri had found that he had a shadow following him from where she had been seated rink side to the front doors to Ice Castle. That was when Yuuri offered to take Grace with him to the dance studio so that she wasn’t bored the entire day.

Victor thought it was a perfect idea since Grace had expressed a desire to dance. That had been almost two weeks ago.

Now both Yuris were preparing for a small exhibition called Hot springs on Ice for the townspeople shortly before Yurio was to return to Russia. Essentially it was a small show that would allow both of them a chance to perform their new short programs in front of an audience.

As Yuuri began his routine in front of the dance studio mirror, he silently hoped that Victor would enjoy the new interpretation the movements. Because the music made him feel alive especially when Victor was watching him intently from the boards.

And honestly, he didn’t want to loose that feeling.

Nor did he want to loose the happiness that he had grown to enjoy from watching Grace learn to dance.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay in updating! To be honest it has been a CRAZY two months: from teaching during the day to teaching online to a mild case of writer's block to student council business, I've been swamped! Hopefully now things will get better with the holidays upon us! But we shall see. 
> 
> I promise that this story is going to be finished! Please don't give up on it!
> 
> Next chapter: The past is revealed....slightly...


	7. Chapter 7

The Hot Springs on Ice exhibition had been a wild success with Yuuri demonstrating his new interpretation of _Eros_ both to the public and Victor at the same time. Even Yurio’s program had been received with great enthusiasm by the people of Hasetsu. Following the exhibition, Yurio had returned to Russia. He knew that he had been gone long enough. Although he wouldn’t leave without Yuuri promising to bring his best during the upcoming skating season.

Without hesitation, Yuuri had agreed.

Now he just needed to make it happen.

In the days that followed Yurio’s departure, Yuuri and Victor had fallen into a simple routine: practice in the morning, six days a week, with alternating days for afternoon works and dance practice with Minako. Sundays were seen as rest days, yet even then Yuuri did had a morning run to make sure that the previous weight he had gained and then lost wouldn’t return.

Even Grace had established a routine of her own. During the times when Victor was coaching Yuuri on skating, she would be practicing her English – sometimes this would be at the onsen under the watchful eyes of the Katsukis or rink side at Ice Castle. And on the days that Yuuri would have dance practice with Minako, she would still go with him and learn dance from the former recipient of the _Benois de la Danse_ award.

Things continue like this for several weeks.

“Perfect!” Victor declared one morning in early June. “Your short program is solid. Now we need to come up with your free program.”

Yuuri smiled as he caught his breath for a moment. “What do you think I should do?” Yuuri asked.

“Hmm,” Victor said placing a finger against his lips. “I’ve got it! I’ll let you create your program then I’ll approve it or not.”

Yuuri’s eyes went wide as his anxiety began to climb. He had never created a program before! He wasn’t a skating genius like Victor was. He had only managed to get as far as he had because of his step sequences and spins! “I’ve never created my own program before! My coach has always chosen everything for me!”

“I’m sure it will come to you.” Victor said with a wink and a smile. “I suggest starting with the music first.”

* * *

Sitting at his desk, several days later, Yuuri simply stared at his computer. His music files were pulled up and his headphones were plugged in. Yet as he continued to listen to various musical compositions ranging from pop to rock to classical to instrumental, nothing seemed to grab his attention. Sighing, he set his headphones down before laying his head down against his arms.

Why was this so hard?

In the past, his coach had given everything about his programs to him. Yet with Victor as his coach, everything was a complete surprise and different than anything he had ever done. Even his short program, _Eros_ , was nothing like anything he had ever skated to before. And to think, he had actually came up with the interpretation on his own – being the beautiful woman who seduces to playboy.

Yet in the past he had always skated for Victor; wanting the Russian skater to take notice of him.

But now? Now the same Russian skater was his coach! Could he actually still skate a program in which he was skating for Victor?

No. Probably not. It would just seem weird.

So what could he skate for? How could have things become so twisted and flipped in a short period of time?

The more Yuuri thought about it, the more he came to a simple conclusion.

Victor.

From the way he said he was going to be his coach and help him win gold to the small, brief touches that Victor gave him during practice to hidden smiles that were obviously meant for Yuuri since Grace usually wasn’t around.

But what did it all mean? Did any of it actual mean anything or was Yuuri imagining everything?

It was all so confusing!

Could Victor Nikiforov actually have feelings towards him? A dime-a-dozen skater from Japan who had never accomplished anything at the senior level other than being a failure?

No, it was impossible.

Or was it?

* * *

 

“No practice today!” Victor happily announced a day later at breakfast.

Yuuri gaped at him for a moment before responding. “We have to practice! I still don’t have my free program yet.”

“That is why we aren’t practicing. You are stressed. And when you are stressed, you don’t skate as well.”

Yuuri sighed as knowing that Victor actually had a point. “So what are we going to do then?”

“Picnic papa?” Grace asked in timid English from her spot at the breakfast table.

“That’s a great idea!” Victor enthusiastically said giving his daughter a kiss on the forehead. “Let’s all go somewhere for a picnic and not think about skating at all today. Do you know of some place we could go Yuuri?”

Yuuri nodded yes as Victor turned back to look at him.

“Perfect! Let’s leave in about an hour. I’ll take care of the food. Sound good?”

Again, Yuuri nodded yes as did Grace before everyone went their own way to get ready.

* * *

 

“This is amazing Yuuri,” Victor said as he and Yuuri sat on a blanket on a nearby beach, watching Grace and Makkachin run along the shoreline. It was still a little too cold for swimming but soon enough it would be perfect weather for that. Perhaps in a month or so, or at least that was what Yuuri had said.

“I often come here when I need to clear my head. Ive wanted to bring you both here for a few weeks now since I thought that Grace would like to see the ocean as would Makkachin, but we just haven’t had the time.” Yuuri said slightly blushing.

“Thank you for sharing it with us.”

The blush on Yuuri’s cheeks only grew a deeper red before his attention was drawn to Grace’s laughter as she threw a ball for Makka. “At least they are having fun.”

“Da.” Victor said with a smile on his face. “I’m happy that she is enjoying her time in Hasetsu. Saint Petersburg had so many hindrances for her. She rarely laughed as much as she does now.”

Yuuri looked at Victor with confusion spread across his face. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“Normally Grace would spend most of her time with her nanny, Alexis. There were many reasons for this. Mainly it was for her protection. Athletes in Russia are often seen as celebrities and their families can be targets of nefarious people. But also it helped to keep the questions as to who her mother is to a minimum. The less people who know of her, the less questions that are asked. A few of my skate club members, Yakov, Christophe Giacometti and now you know about her.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why keep her a secret? She is absolutely adorable.”

“That she is,” Victor said with a smile. “But like I said, there are certain things that I want to keep private.”

“Oh.” Yuuri said, understanding. Grace must have been born from a one night stand and the mom stuck her with Victor.

Sensing that the entire conversation was not going in the direction that he wanted it to go, Victor sighed. “It’s not what you think.”

“Eh?”

“Grace is not my biological daughter.”

“Ehhhh?!?”

“She’s actually my niece.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who was expecting that one?
> 
> Next chapter: More of Victor's childhood and how he became Grace's papa.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is a miracle what a new laptop can do!

A million different thoughts went surging through Yuuri’s mind all at once.

_Grace wasn’t technically Victor’s daughter._

_Victor was a dad, but on the other hand was not._

_Victor actually could be gay!_

Then all the rushing thoughts came to a stand still when one question presented itself in Yuuri’s mind.

What had happened?

Before he could even think to phrase the question correctly, his curiosity got the best of him and words simply spilled out of his mouth. “What happened?” he flatly asked.

“It was shortly after Worlds about four years ago. I was on my way back to St. Petersburg from Shanghai when Yakov told me that he and I were going to Moscow instead. I had asked him why, knowing that it had to be something with my sister, but he wouldn’t say until we had gotten there. Apparently a drunk driver had hit my sister and her husband during a night out to see the ballet. Both of them had been killed instantly. Grace had been at home with a sitter at the time. All of this had taken place during the World Championships and I had only just found out when I arrived back in Russia.”

“Where had Grace been during this?”

“My sister’s husband Anton had an aunt that lived nearby. She had taken Grace until things could be sorted out. Everything happened so fast over the days that followed, that it’s hard to recall. Except I do remember sitting in the lawyer’s office when the will was read. I was shocked that my sister and Anton wanted me to raise Grace as my own.”

“How come?”

“Katya and I never had much of a normal childhood. I didn’t know who our father was, while she had a few memories of him. According to Katya, he left shortly before I was born. Our mother raised us the best she could on her own. That was until she died of a heart attack just before I began figure skating. I was 12 at the time but Katya was 18. So instead of being put into an orphanage, Katya raised me since. That was when Yakov and Lilia stepped into our lives. Perhaps you could say the rest is history.”

Grace laughing caught Victor and Yuuri’s attention. They both turned their heads to watch as Grace threw a ball down the beach for Makkachin, who happily ran to retrieve the ball.

“The last four years have been some of the best of my life, yet also some of the worse. Sure, I gained a daughter with taking care of Grace, but I lost so much. Before her, I was considered a playboy by the media. But once she became mine, many things changed. Dating took a backseat…”

“But all I ever heard about were who you dating, including Chris. Although most of the time, you were linked with various female models.”

Victor laughed. “Chris and I are best friends. Nothing more. The tabloids wrote whatever they wanted to – especially about me being straight.”

“Oh.”

Victor moved slightly closer to and leaned in closer to the young man, who had been the only one that he had every truly wanted to date. Even after all the years of longing to know Yuuri better and on a different level, Victor was slightly intimidated at how to approach the idea of a relationship with the shy Japanese skater. It had been so long since he had been with anyone...

“How do you see me, Yuuri?” Victor softly asked.

Yuuri turned to look at Victor with a confused look on his face. “What do you mean?”

“What do you want me to be to you? A father figure?”

“No.”

“A brother then?”

Yuuri shook his head no. He was wondering where Victor was going with this line of questioning.

“A boyfriend then.”

As soon as Victor had said those words, he noticed that Yuuri’s eyes became large in what he hoped was shock. A small smirk formed on his own face as he leaned closer to Yuuri. Then something amazing happened.

In the blink of an eye, Yuuri was pressing his lips against Victor’s. Just as quick as it had happened, Yuuri was pulling back.

“I’m sorry! I’m…” the younger man tried to say, but Victor wasn’t having it. He grabbed ahold of Yuuri’s t-shirt and pulled the timid young man back towards him. The kiss continued on before they both pulled away for air.

“Boyfriend,” Yuuri whispered. “I choose that.”

“I’ll try my best.” Victor said with a smile.

“Just…can we…” Yuuri said, stumbling over his words slightly. Victor could tell that he was getting nervous about something.

“Can we what?” he gently asked.

“Can we go slow? I’ve never dated anyone…”

“Of course!”

“And you’ll still coach me?”

“Da.” Victor replied with his smile only growing larger as he reached out and tangled his fingers with Yuuri’s. “I did promise that you’d win the Grand Prix didn’t?”

Yuuri simply nodded as his smile grew.

* * *

 

Between stolen kisses and whispers, Victor and Yuuri decided to keep their budding relationship under wraps for a bit. And even though their personal relationship had changed, the relationship between Yuuri and Victor as coach and skater had not. Victor still expected him to become the best and surpass even him.

It was because of their new relationship that Yuuri decided to open up a bit. He had finally decided on what he wanted to do for his free program. He wanted to tell his story and how Victor had changed him.

Contacting Ketty Abelashvili, an old classmate, Yuuri asked that she recompose an original piece that he had commissioned back in Detroit but never used. Happily, Ketty agreed. Within days, the music had arrived. When Yuuri played the music for Victor, the coach side of him agreed with was perfect.

Thus his free program was born.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do ya'll think? Reviews, kudos and general love will all be consider early birthday presents since my actual birthday is tomorrow.
> 
>  
> 
> ;)

**Author's Note:**

> So?? Want to know more? Let me know!
> 
> This story was just itching to be written...now perhaps since it is started, I can focus on my other stories! Feel free to check my other YoI fics:
> 
>  
> 
> [Heart of the Matter](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11796945)  
> [Beautiful Disaster](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13995969)  
> [Twist of Fate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13188210)


End file.
